White House responds to photo appearing to show Trump kissing his assistant on golf course

The White House has responded after a photo appearing to show Donald Trump kissing his assistant went viral.

In the image, which has been circulating on social media today (September 16), the US president appears to be embracing a blonde woman on a golf course, who many quickly assumed was his aide, Natalie Harp, who has worked for Trump for around four years.

While the authenticity of the image remains unknown, a spokesperson for the White House simple said the image was 'clearly a fake photo'.

Independent fact checking site Snopes has been investigating the photo, and found that two different versions of the image are currently being shared online.

One image is significantly higher resolution than the other and reportedly shows telltale signs of being edited with artificial intelligence, such as having hands with too many fingers, as well as a watermark showing it had been created or edited using OpenAI.

It's clear that this 'photo' of Donald Trump is AI generated (X)

However, the lower resolution image was said to be too blurry for any of these telltale signs to be visible.

Speaking to Snopes, co-founder of deepfake detection company Get Real, Hany Farid, said the higher resolution image was clearly AI, but the lower resolution image presented 'a bit of a red flag, with its authenticity inconclusive.

The photo first started popping up on X on September 14, with one person commenting: "Thirty years ago, a photo like this could have destroyed a politician’s career overnight. Today? Barely worth interrupting the news cycle.

"But don’t worry — I’m sure the guardians of 'Christian family values' are preparing their furious statements as we speak."

While only the back of the woman's head is visible in the image, fake or not, most have been quick to assume it belongs to Natalie Harp, after a letter she penned to the president was leaked.

Natalie Harp has worked as Trump's aide for around four years (SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)

The New York Times shared the letter, in which Harp appeared to apologize to Trump if she was 'an embarrassment' during their trip to a golf course in Scotland, where she was filmed running across the course to keep up with his cart.

"I also am sorry if I was an embarrassment walking the course in Scotland," she allegedly wrote.

"I want things to always be right between us. I also know I’ve been distracted all week (forgetting to eat throughout the days, and even forgetting to sleep, and only catching a couple hours at a time)."

The publication said she signed off: "With all my heart, Natalie," having previously reported the aide told Trump, "you are all that matters to me.